Notes For Players
Here is a quick list of notes to keep in mind for players. For reference, the first campaigns in this setting were run in the Pathfinder system, but partway through the concurrent Rise of the Runelords and Emerald Spire arcs we switched to Fifth Edition Dungeons and Dragons. No Raise Dead Upon death, souls become detached from the body and are almost immediately reconstituted or reincarnated elsewhere. Because of this, spells that restore life after death do not function and therefore do not exist. Spells that bring people back to life seconds or rounds after death are acceptable since the soul will have not left the body. Spells such as Speak with Dead function not by summoning souls, but rather just reading off the lingering imprint of the soul on the body. Undead and sylvans are constructs formed by binding souls from previously living mortals into shells made of dead animals or living plants. Powerful extraplanars can work strange magics regarding souls but most depend on moving and reformatting existing souls, not restoring true life to the dead. Restoring the dead is in the hands of the gods and would require significant effort at the hands of a player. The Planes Both rules systems used suggest a great number of dimensions/planes and a relative ease of traversing between them at higher levels. This setting has six planes only in addition to man-made pocket dimensions, and they are different than what might be expected from the standard rules. There are significant detriments to going off-plane. Time passes strangely such that when one leaves Materia there will be a random roll, spanning from seconds to years, to determine how much time has passed on Materia when one returns. Players who blithely travel to different planes may find themselves losing months or years in an instant. Trips to Etheria will not result in as much lost time as the Outer Planes. Materians seem to, in most cases, avoid aging while residing on other planes for short experiences; they may age erratically and spontaneously should they experience years' worth of time while off-plane. As well, the Outer Planes are not hospitable to life: without specific magics to protect a Materian traveler, existing in Heaven or Hell for even short periods will kill them. Conversely, Etheria is fundamentally habitable to Materians though it places fluctuating demands on physical needs. To that end, Materians will not feel hungry or tired in Etheria '''and will not be required to rest or eat; unfortunately, upon returning to Materia they will feel the cumulative effects of having not maintained their bodies and '''risk incapacitation or death. These effects can be avoided by continuing to eat and sleep regularly. Alignments Roleplaying is considered more important than strict alignment; characters alignments can expect to change fluidly throughout a campaign as their personalities develop. Within the world, alignment is detectable but is not generally a source of prejudice: few groups, regardless of their aims, will judge someone for an evil alignment alone. Actions speak louder than alignment detection and an evil alignment is not evidence of wrong-doing, rather a suggestion that a given person will act with self-interest rather than empathy. Of course, there are still always those who possess and act upon stereotypes but they are viewed like anyone else who holds racist beliefs. No race of any sort is bound by inherent alignments. Not all undead or devils are evil; not all angels are good. Playable Races The races available to play in this setting are as follows. The availability of races depends on which continent the campaign is set in. Some races are vastly different from their presentations in standard fantasy settings, particularly orcs, hobgoblins and gnolls; please ask about stat blocks and backstory before selecting a monstrous race. Common races make up a majority and are wholly unremarkable for that location. Uncommon races are a visible minority but are not out of place in metropolitan areas. Rare races are not native; individuals must have a particular backstory and will stand out to some degree. Extremely rare races require permission and are out of place; they will be questioned heavily unless they disguise themselves to blend in. * Humans - The most common race, found everywhere except Solenli. Sets the standards for most civilizations. * Orcs - A racial subgroup of human, originally from Dionisia but spread about the world through Valparisan slave trade. Common everywhere except Solenli. * Elves - A racial subgroup of human made through ancient magics. Common in Mirilarin, extremely rare everywhere else. * Dwarves/Hobbits - Two related races of mountain-dwelling peoples originally from Dionisia. Common in Dionisia and Akroum, uncommon in Cafeyete, rare in Mirilarin. * Hobgoblins - A hardy people hailing from the northern coasts of Solenli and a few other scattered settlements. Common in Solenli, uncommon in Mirilarin, extremely rare everywhere else. * Gnolls - Tribal peoples with hyena-like characteristics and little regard for human civilizations. Common in central Akroum, rare everywhere else. * Aelurians (Catfolk) - Wandering nomads and gypsies with cat-like characteristics that have spread everywhere; they are related to Gnolls. Uncommon everywhere except Solenli. * Lacertians (Lizardfolk) - Reptilian-like peoples that hail from equatorial islands. Common in Akroum and southern Dionisia, rare everywhere else. * Mimigans - A race of large sentient rabbits that prefer living underground. Uncommon in Arroyito, extremely rare everywhere else. * Kobolds - Somewhat dim lizard-like people with small statures and propensities for savant-like talents whose cultures rarely interact well with larger races. Common everywhere except Solenli. * Feykin - Includes gnomes and changelings. Products of magical interference in the natural order. Extremely rare everywhere. Languages Read this page. Magic Arcane magic is a fully recognised science throughout the world, often likened to engineering and medicine. Some countries depend heavily on the integration of magic into everyday infrastructure, while others depend more significantly on mundane technology, making magic an extravagance. Those who study and practice arcane science are called wizards. Wizardry is most often the purview of the wealthy, thanks to its requisite higher education, and practitioners are highly respected, particularly if they choose to serve a small town rather than work in a metropolitan area for better pay and resources. Artificers and alchemists are highly specialised wizards who, rather than commit themselves to pure 'academic' magic, instead focus on integrating magic with mechanical engineering and biochemistry respectively. While their work can result in vast technological advancements for a society, they have historically been considered less powerful and influential than generalist wizards despite their very real contributions. Divine magic is considered the favour of the gods towards the particularly devout, whether those gods are heavenly (clerics, paladins) or earthly (druids, rangers). Divine mages who serve communities are, like wizards, highly respected for their abilities. Not all people believe that 'divine' magic is evidence of gods but is rather a result of innate talent and extraplanar meddling; atheists can be found everywhere. Some people are born with the innate capacity to cast magic, whether it is arcane or divine. For some it is the result of outbreeding many generations ago with an inherently magical being and that heritage manifests as power. These individuals might be the target of discrimination, especially if their ancestor was known to be unsavory, but are much more likely to be praised and lauded for their abilities. In most others, it is unclear where this capacity for magic stems from and it is often just dismissed as a function of their soul. Bards, with their manipulative and chaotic magic, are often considered to have the souls of fey, and are broadly considered as charming, lying scoundrels regardless of their personal intentions. Summoners, people born with a powerful, unbreakable bond to an extraplanar, are said to have 'split-souls': their soul was divided at birth which resulted in two linked individuals, one with an increased capacity for magic and the other with enhanced physical capacity. Summoners have roughly the same place in society as sorcerers. The word 'mage' refers to anyone who can cast magic, regardless of type. Though magic is generally known to be 'real' and certain sentient non-human races are commonplace, there are still many things that the average man would consider nonsense. Powerful magic is rare and well outside the experience of most low- and middle-class peoples, and many are loathe to accept that magic might be an influence in their lives. Adventuring Monsters, as well as truly intelligent undead, sylvans and extraplanars, are so rare as to be considered fables in peaceful, civilised locations; many would happily believe that the most monstrous things in reality are goblins and feral, dire animals. As such, most law enforcement and local officials are slow to accept the truth when presented with the threat, implication, or even evidence of monstrous involvement. There are many exceptions: towns at the edges of wilderness, in particularly cursed areas or who are located near Feywilds may have long ago accepted the dangerous reality of marauding man-eating creatures and other magical phenomena. Because monsters and powerful magic are rare, most locations do not have a plan for dealing with them should they threaten stability or lives. Certain metropolitan areas might have a number of wizards or other standing specialists for dealing with criminal activities, but the majority of mid- to small-sized towns have no general protection. They are forced to depend on adventurers. Adventuring is a recognised, albeit disrespected, career for those with the inclination. People who work on a freelance basis fighting monsters and investigating magical disturbances are considered adventurers. Few people 'adventure' for more than a few years in their youth until their thirst for danger and discovery is sated; those that continue adventuring later into their lives are often seen as a bit unhinged at least. Most career adventurers are wanderers, as no single location can support an adventurer long term unless they take on regular guard work or ply a trade. Being strangers, adventurers are quite often viewed with suspicion and disdain: many people mistake the correlation of adventurers and trouble with causation, blaming whatever misfortunes beset the area on the adventurers themselves. Due to people's generally flippant attitude towards the threat of monsters, adventurers are hard-pressed to be paid effectively for their work. This forces most into a life of looting, depending on the collection of gear and valuables from the locations they investigate to give them the money they need to survive. While this is in some cases illegal, most people do not begrudge adventurers the spoils of lost ruins and some law enforcement begrudgingly expects that adventurers will steal from criminals in a heartbeat and claim right of salvage on basically everything. Since the high-level enchanted armaments that skilled adventurers depend on are rare, mostly useless to non-adventurers, and difficult for regular merchants to sell, most adventurers are forced to get new equipment by effectively passing it among themselves through looting, trading or crafting. Despite the near impossibility to get official, legal pay for the work, adventuring is well-known as a lucrative career if you can survive it: it only takes one monster's treasure hoard or a decent pay-out from a wealthy client to live comfortably in a small town, and a successful adventurer of a few years can often sell off their spoils and retire lavishly if they so choose. For those that do not retire, it is a difficult, dangerous and often thankless job, but many choose it regardless. Important Pages The standard assumptions regarding certain races and dimensions do not necessarily apply. Please read the following pages for details. * The Planes of Existence * Extraplanars * Undead * Race - In particular, orcs, elves, gnolls, and feykin (gnomes)